2007-01-28

A sprinkler accidentally set off by a resident sparked an electrical fire in a First Avenue apartment building Saturday morning, flooded businesses and apartments, and shut down a city block for several hours.

A resident on the 21st floor of one of the Harbor Steps buildings hit a sprinkler while cleaning, said Jim Fosse, deputy chief with the Seattle Fire Department. The sprinkler flooded that apartment and an adjacent electrical room, then gushed down several floors. The water shorted out another electrical panel on the sixth floor, setting off another sprinkler, Fosse said